This bachelor’s project reports results from Work Package 4 of the Interreg project FREIIA (2022–2025), which tackles digitalization, climate change, centralization, and demographic imbalance by strengthening small Northern European island communities through sustainable, locally anchored, student‑led innovation.
In 2024, the student team assumed leadership roles and organized a field visit to Koster; in 2025, they added field trips to Groix and Ouessant. Across six islands (Hvaler, Bornholm, Koster, Schiermonnikoog, Groix, Ouessant), they conducted 148 stakeholder interviews, analyzed data via Grounded Theory and a new AI‑assisted method, and facilitated co‑creation workshops using the Double Diamond and design thinking.
Shared challenges include housing shortages, youth outmigration, seasonal tourism dependency, infrastructure gaps, and limited cross‑sector collaboration. FREIIA findings highlight transferable pathways—mobile innovation hubs, stronger democratic platforms, circular business models, localized cooperation, and year‑round tourism—while demonstrating the value of student facilitators and clarifying strengths and limits of AI in qualitative research.
